Dance Central 2

Dance Central 2 is a music rhythm game for the Xbox 360 and is the sequel of Dance Central (video game). It was released in October 2011.

Dance Central 2
European box art
Developer(s)	Harmonix
Publisher(s)	Microsoft Studios
Series	Dance Central
Platform(s)	Xbox 360
Release	PAL: October 21, 2011 NA: October 25, 2011
Genre(s)	Music, rhythm
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer

Plot

Dr. Tan is monitoring the status of the area in The Airship, laughing while doing so.

The player first meets up with Riptide Crew at the High Tide, and when they arrive, Emilia rejects and discloses to them that auditions to be in their crew were last week. Bodie however gives them an opportunity after hearing about the player's potential, and Emilia soon follows forth. Once they are impressed, the player receives their crew card, but not without a warning from Bodie stating other crews existing nearby, with some of them being unfriendly.

Flash4wrd is the next crew they meet, and they appear at the Tee Off. Taye recognizes the player being the one Bodie mentioned to them earlier while Li'l T compliments their style. They both then give the player the chance, and once the player completes their set of challenges, Li'l T saws how hot their dancing was, but Taye on the other hand questions if their dancing will be hot enough to take on The Glitterati. Li'l T immediately responds fearlessly and describes them as "two pale primadonnas living in a skyscraper" but Taye dismisses her that statement by challenging her to say it again at night without a nightlight. After, Taye gives the player their crew card and reminds them to stay focus while staying true to themselves.

Lu$h Crew is next on deck, appearing on Set Adrift. Angel mistakes the player for wanting to party, while Miss Aubrey corrects him as someone everyone is gushing over. When the player completes their tasks, Miss Aubrey formally welcomes them into their crew. Angel uses this as an opportunity to flirt with Miss Aubrey, only for her to quickly shut it down. He then gives the player their crew card.

Hi-Def becomes the next crew the player interacts with. Appearing on Lowdown, Mo and Glitch are talking to each other when Glitch notices the player from behind and mistakes them from being a spy for The Glitterati. Mo does not think that to be the case and simply sees the player as someone who would like to dance with them. When Hi-Def's challenges are completed, Glitch is stunned and compares their dancing to Mo's, but quickly retracts it to Mo when he is not trying. Mo then allows them to rep for their crew as a way to deny The Glitterati from stealing their style, and gives the player their crew card.

After those four crews are met, The Glitterati becomes the fifth crew the player encounters. Up at Penthaüs, Jaryn gives a short introduction before quickly doubting the player's talent. Kerith however overrules that statement and gives the player a chance to dance with them. When The Glitterati's goals are met, they comment on how underestimated they thought their talent was and allow them to rep for their crew, with Jaryn throwing their crew card once they do.

Once those five crews are met, the player is taken to Dr. Tan in The Airship. He notes all what the player has done, and explains his knowledge of the player by displaying them on the screens, exposing that he was monitoring their every move. He then introduces the player to D-Cypher, a crew he ensures will not be defeated, to battle the player with the goal in conquering them so that he could take over the dancing world.

When the player beats D-Cypher, The Airship turns into chaos, with D-Cypher shutting off, and the screens behind starting to fall off. Enraged, Dr. Tan gives a lengthy statement on how he will not give up, pushes a button on his control pad, and escapes the room, giving a hysterical laugh once doing so.

Gameplay

Dance Central 2 at IgroMir 2011

The core gameplay in Dance Central 2 is similar to the first one where players mimic characters along on-screen with flashcards there for guidance. The game has been largely revamped compared to its precessdors, including the ability to allow two players to dance side by side, adding voice commands, and enhancing the Break It Down feature. The Freestyle section, while still available, can also be disabled within the game. If done, additional moves will appear in the game as a replacement, creating one uninteruppted routine depending on the mode used. Crew Challenge is the story mode implemented in the game. It involves the player earning the ability to rep crews throughout the area while underlyingly trying to defeat Dr. Tan from taking over the dancing population.

There are five modes available in Dance Central 2:

Perform It: Gives the player a chance to show of his moves and skill while performing a dance routine. This mode can be played with one or two players and allows a person to swap in and out while the other is playing if desired. Both players do not have to play the same difficulty, but this can only happen prior to the routine starting.

Dance Battle: A head-to-head mode between two players to see who is the best. Players go through a song, with two interloops mixed in. One of them focuses on one player to do the routine as the other player is temporarily disabled, and the other involves the players nailing moves from the routine to earn extra points. In that interloop, up to four moves can pop up at any time, and some are marked in gold, indicating more points. Likewise in Perform It, the players do not have to play on the same difficulty.

Break It Down: A training mode that allows the player to learn the routines in the game. The mode has been enhanced from the previous game, allowing the player to pick certain moves to focus on and record themselves dancing to moves to compare how well they are at aceing them.

Crew Challenge: A campaign mode that gives a player a chance to reach for the top by impressing the game's in dance-crews. Succesffully dancing to each crew's challenge song, once unlocking it, gives the player the opportunity to represent them, and the more reps earned, the higher the notibility will be.

Fitness: A workout mode that tracks calories, with an indicator of how many have been burned along with the amount of time spent in the mode towards the top when enabled. There are also pre-made playlists available, along with customizable ones that can be made outside the mode for use in Fitness. [1][2][3][4]

Most characters feature alternate outfits separate from the main outfits (known as their "Crew Look") to wear during gameplay. These alternate outfits are labeled as "Street Style", and are unlocked by earning 36 stars within the character's selection of songs from the crew they are a part of within Crew Challenge mode on any difficulty. Additionally, some characters have a third outfit labeled "DC Classic". These outfits are ones they wore in the previous game, and they are unlocked by putting in cheat codes for the game at the "Redeem Code" section.

The game features six venues (High Tide, Set Adrift, Tee Off, Lowdown, Penthaüs and The Airship) for the player to dance in. All except one are available from the start. Venues can be changed before the player starts a routine.

Characters

Dance Central 2 features eighteen characters, each divided up in pairs as a crew. Twelve characters are available from the start, while the other six are locked.

Riptide Crew - Bodie and Emilia

Flash4wrd - Taye and Li'l T

Lu$h Crew - Angel and Miss Aubrey

Hi-Def - Mo and Glitch

The Glitterati - Kerith and Jaryn

D-Cypher - CYPH-78 and CYPH-56

D-Cypher Elite - Dr. Tan and CYPH-ELITE

Ninja Crew - Shinju and Kichi

Icon Crew - Marcos and Frenchy

Soundtrack

Songs

Dance Central 2 comes with an all new list of song from different artists from both old and new. The songs are color-coded based on what crew you have to dance off against on that song in the Crew Challenges mode. However, the songs in light blue are songs you have to pass with 4 stars or higher in order to proceed to the next crew, and are used in D-Cypher's crew challenge at the end. There are 44 songs in-game.

Song	Artist	Year	Choreographer	Difficulty (Out of 7)	Crew	Character	DC3 venue
"Baby Got Back (Mix Mix)"	Sir Mix-a-Lot	1992	Chanel Thompson	6	Riptide	Emilia	Invite Only
"Bad Romance"	Lady Gaga	2009	Marcos Aguirre	5	The Glitterati	Kerith	DCI HQ
"Body to Body"	Electric Valentine	2011	Marcos Aguirre	3	The Glitterati	Jaryn	DCI HQ
"Born This Way"	Lady Gaga	2011	Marcos Aguirre	5	The Glitterati	Kerith	DCI HQ
"Bulletproof"	La Roux	2009	Marcos Aguirre	2	Lu$h Crew	Miss Aubrey	Studio 675
"Club Can't Handle Me"	Flo Rida ft. David Guetta	2010	Chanel Thompson	3	Riptide	Emilia	DCI HQ
"Conceited (There's Something About Remy)"	Remy Ma	2005	Marcos Aguirre	5	Flash4wrd	Taye	Studio 675
"DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love"	Usher ft. Pitbull	2010	Chanel Thompson	5	Riptide	Emilia	DCI HQ
"Fire Burning"	Sean Kingston	2009	Frenchy Hernandez	3	Lu$h Crew	Miss Aubrey	Studio 675
"Get Ur Freak On"	Missy Elliott	2001	Marcos Aguirre	7	Flash4wrd	Taye	Crow's Nest
"Goodies"	Ciara ft. Petey Pablo	2004	Frenchy Hernandez	4	Flash4wrd	Taye	Studio 675
"Grenade"	Bruno Mars	2010	Marcos Aguirre	4	Lu$h Crew	Angel	DCI HQ
"Hot Stuff"	Donna Summer	1979	Chanel Thompson	3	Flash4wrd	Li'l T	Free Skate
"I Like It"	Enrique Iglesias ft. Pitbull	2010	Chanel Thompson	3	Riptide	Emilia	DCI HQ
"I Wish for You"	EXILE	2011	Kunle Oladehin	4	Hi-Def	Mo	DCI HQ
"Impacto (Remix)"	Daddy Yankee ft. Fergie	2007	Frenchy Hernandez	2	Flash4wrd	Taye	Studio 675
"Last Night"	Diddy ft. Keyshia Cole	2006	Frenchy Hernandez	2	Lu$h Crew	Miss Aubrey	Studio 675
"Like a G6"	Far East Movement	2010	Spikey Soria	5	The Glitterati	Jaryn	DCI HQ
"Mai Ai Hee (Dragostea Din Tei)"	O-Zone	2003	Ricardo Foster	1	Hi-Def	Glitch	Studio 675
"Massive Attack"	Nicki Minaj ft. Sean Garrett	2010	Devin Woolridge	4	Riptide	Bodie	DCI HQ
"Meddle"	Little Boots	2008	Marcos Aguirre	4	The Glitterati	Kerith	Studio 675
"My Prerogative"	Bobby Brown	1988	Devin Woolridge	4	Riptide	Bodie	Toprock Avenue
"Nothin' on You"	B.o.B ft. Bruno Mars	2009	Marcos Aguirre	3	Lu$h Crew	Angel	DCI HQ
"Oops (Oh My)"	Tweet ft. Missy Elliott	2002	Frenchy Hernandez	3	The Glitterati	Jaryn	DCI HQ
"Reach"	Atlantic Connection and Armanni Reign	2011	Ricardo Foster	1	Riptide	Bodie	DCI HQ
"Real Love"	Mary J. Blige	1992	Marcos Aguirre	1	Lu$h Crew	Miss Aubrey	Invite Only
"Right Thurr"	Chingy	2003	Frenchy Hernandez	3	Flash4wrd	Li'l T	Studio 675
"Rude Boy"	Rihanna	2010	Frenchy Hernandez	3	Flash4wrd	Taye	Studio 675
"Run (I'm a Natural Disaster)"	Gnarls Barkley	2008	Kunle Oladehin	6	Hi-Def	Mo	Studio 675
"Sandstorm"	Darude	1999	Marcos Aguirre	1	The Glitterati	Kerith	Invite Only
"Satellite"	Lena	2010	Spikey Soria	7	The Glitterati	Jaryn	DCI HQ
"Sexy Chick"	David Guetta ft. Akon	2009	Torey Nelson	7	Hi-Def	Mo	Studio 675
"Somebody to Love"	Justin Bieber	2010	Torey Nelson	6	Hi-Def	Mo	DCI HQ
"Technologic"	Daft Punk	2005	Kunle Oladehin	6	Hi-Def	Mo	Studio 675
"The Breaks"	Kurtis Blow	1980	Devin Woolridge	2	Lu$h Crew	Angel	Toprock Avenue
"The Humpty Dance"	Digital Underground	1990	Ricardo Foster	2	Riptide	Bodie	Invite Only
"This Is How We Do It"	Montell Jordan	1995	Ricardo Foster	2	Hi-Def	Glitch	Invite Only
"Toxic"	As Made Famous By Britney Spears	2004	Marcos Aguirre	7	The Glitterati	Jaryn	Studio 675
"Turn Me On"	Kevin Lyttle	2003	Marcos Aguirre	2	Lu$h Crew	Angel	Studio 675
"Venus"	Bananarama	1986	Marcos Aguirre	2	Lu$h Crew	Miss Aubrey	Toprock Avenue
"What Is Love"	Haddaway	1993	Chanel Thompson	5	Riptide	Emilia	Invite Only
"Whip My Hair"	Willow	2010	Spikey Soria	5	Flash4wrd	Li'l T	DCI HQ
"Yeah!"	Usher ft. Lil' Jon & Ludacris	2004	Ricardo Foster	5	Hi-Def	Glitch	Studio 675
"You're a Jerk"	New Boyz	2009	Devin Woolridge	3	Hi-Def	Glitch	Studio 675

Importing

Main article: Dance Central Soundtrack

Songs from the first Dance Central, including its downloadable content, can be played on this game using an importing technique. Downloable content will automatically appear in the game if it has been purchased already, but the on-disc songs can be moved in using an Import Pack. This is done by retrieving the code from the first game's manual, which is then put in through the "Redeem Code" section of the game that will then prompt the player to download it. In order to download it, it costs $5,00 and requires an Xbox Live gamertag. Once downloaded, they are available to play within Dance Central 2, and they also receive Mo's "DC Classic" outfit as a bonus. Only the actual songs get transferred, associated scores do not. Additionally, the freestyle section is still embedded; disabling the feature will not disable the section within those songs. The list of songs, and its downloadable content, can be seen here.

Importing the original Dance Central songs has since been disabled. Players who have not imported them do not have the option to anymore, but if the players have, they can still access them in the game.

Downloadable content

Main article: Downloadable content for Dance Central

Dance Central 2 features more downloadable content (DLC) on the Xbox Live Market for 240 microsoft points. All downloadable and in-game from the original Dance Central are forward compatible with Dance Central 2. Any new DLC after Dance Central 2's release are only compatible with Dance Central 2 and 3. Songs are available for 240 MSP (US$3,00).

Song Title	Artist	Year	Choreographer	Difficulty (Out of 7)	Crew	Character	Release Date	Dance Pack	DC3 Venue
"Marry the Night"	Lady Gaga	2011	Marcos Aguirre	3	The Glitterati	Jaryn	November 22, 2011		DCI HQ
"The Edge of Glory"	Lady Gaga	2011	Marcos Aguirre	2	Lu$h Crew	Miss Aubrey	November 22, 2011		DCI HQ
"What's My Name"	Rihanna ft. Drake	2010	Frenchy Hernandez	4	Flash4wrd	Taye	December 20, 2011		Invite Only
"S&M"	Rihanna	2011	Marcos Aguirre	4	The Glitterati	Jaryn	December 20, 2011		Crow's Nest
"Only Girl (In the World)"	Rihanna	2010	Spikey Soria	7	Flash4wrd	Li'l T	December 20, 2011		Crow's Nest
"Closer"	Ne-Yo	2008	Kunle Oladehin	3	Hi-Def	Mo	January 10, 2012	11	Studio 675
"Don't Touch Me (Throw da Water on 'Em)"	Busta Rhymes	2008	Devin Woolridge	4	Riptide	Bodie	January 17, 2012	11	Studio 675
"Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)"	C+C Music Factory	1990	Chanel Thompson	6	Riptide	Emilia	January 24, 2012	8	Invite Only
"Forget You"	Cee Lo Green	2010	Devin Woolridge	2	Hi-Def	Glitch	January 31, 2012	9	DCI HQ
"Say Hey (I Love You)"	Michael Franti & Spearhead	2008	Ricardo Foster Jr.	2	Riptide	Bodie	February 14, 2012	11	Toprock Avenue
"Milkshake"	Kelis	2003	Marcos Aguirre	4	Lu$h Crew	Miss Aubrey	February 21, 2012	8	Studio 675
"Party Rock Anthem"	LMFAO ft. Lauren Bennett & GoonRock	2011	Torey Nelson	6	Riptide	Bodie	February 28, 2012		Invite Only
"Yeah 3x"	Chris Brown	2010	Torey Nelson	5	Riptide	Bodie	March 13, 2012		DCI HQ
"Escapade"	Janet Jackson	1989	Chanel Thompson	2	Riptide	Emilia	March 27, 2012		Toprock Avenue
"Nasty"	Janet Jackson	1986	Marcos Aguirre	5	Lu$h Crew	Miss Aubrey	March 27, 2012		Toprock Avenue
"We No Speak Americano"	Yolanda Be Cool & DCUP	2010	Ricardo Foster	6	Hi-Def	Glitch	April 10, 2012	10	Crow's Nest
"Commander"	Kelly Rowland ft. David Guetta	2011	Marcos Aguirre	6	Lu$h Crew	Angel	April 17, 2012	11	DCI HQ
"Give Me Everything"	Pitbull ft. Ne-Yo, Afrojack & Nayer	2011	Frenchy Hernandez	4	Lu$h Crew	Angel	April 24, 2012	8	DCI HQ
"Spice Up Your Life"	Spice Girls	1997	Marcos Aguirre	2	Flash4wrd	Li'l T	May 8, 2012	10	Invite Only
"Hello Good Morning"	Diddy-Dirty Money ft. T.I.	2010	Nick DeMoura	5	Riptide	Bodie	May 15, 2012	9	DCI HQ
"Scenario"	A Tribe Called Quest	1992	Devin Woolridge	5	Hi-Def	Glitch	May 22, 2012	8	Crow's Nest
"Low"	Flo Rida	2007	Chanel Thompson	3	Flash4wrd	Taye	May 29, 2012	9	Studio 675
"Replay"	Iyaz	2009	Nick DeMoura	5	Lu$h Crew	Angel	June 12, 2012	9	DCI HQ
"Hot In Herre"	Nelly	2002	Kunle Oladehin	5	Hi-Def	Glitch	June 19, 2012	11	Studio 675
"Whine Up"	Kat DeLuna ft. Elephant Man	2007	Marcos Aguirre	5	Flash4wrd	Taye	June 26, 2012	8	Studio 675
"Round & Round"	Selena Gomez & the Scene	2010	Nick DeMoura	5	Lu$h Crew	Miss Aubrey	July 10, 2012	10	DCI HQ
"La La Land"	Demi Lovato	2008	Marcos Aguirre	2	Flash4wrd	Li'l T	July 17, 2012	10	Studio 675
"Never Say Never"	Justin Bieber ft. Jaden Smith	2010	Kunie Oladehin	4	Hi-Def	Mo	July 24, 2012	11	DCI HQ
"Down On Me"	Jeremih ft. 50 Cent	2010	Marcos Aguirre	3	Lu$h Crew	Angel	August 7, 2012	11	DCI HQ
"O.P.P."	Naughty by Nature	1991	Ricardo Foster	7	Hi-Def	Glitch	August 14, 2012	9	Invite Only
"Let It Rock"	Kevin Rudolf ft. Lil Wayne	2008	Marcos Aguirre	4	Riptide	Bodie	August 21, 2012	11	Studio 675
"Promiscuous"	Nelly Furtado ft. Timbaland	2006	Devin Woolridge	5	Lu$h Crew	Angel	August 28, 2012	11	Studio 675

Development

Promotion at the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2011

Shortly after the release of Dance Central, the pre-production of the game had been already started. Harmonix planned to observe the sales of Dance Central, which would help determine whether the development on the full version should start.[5]

Dance Central 2 was officially announced at E3 2011 during Microsoft's press conference.[6] It was announced on February 2, 2012 that if the community reaches certain milestones, like star count or calories burned, three new crews and two new outfits will be unlocked. As of April 30, 2012, all the crews and outfits have been unlocked.[7]

Reception

Reception
Aggregate scores Aggregator Score GameRankings 86.65%[8] Metacritic 86/100[9] Review scores Publication Score 1Up.com A[10] Destructoid 9/10[11] Edge 8/10[12] Eurogamer 8/10[13] Game Informer 8.25/10[14] GamesRadar+ [15] GamesTM 8/10[16] Giant Bomb [17] IGN 9/10[18] OXM (US) 9.5/10[19] VideoGamer.com 8/10[20]

The game have received generally positive reviews. IGN praising the game's style, added multiplayer, and dances, but mentions how a lot of the dances feel quite feminine, and how there is no shuffle mode.[18] As of August 2016, the game has sold 2.04 million copies worldwide.

References

1. "Dance Central 2 information". Harmonix. Archived from the original on 8 July 2013. Retrieved 8 June 2011.
2. Steimer, Kristine. "Dance Central 2: The Basics". IGN. Retrieved 9 June 2011.
3. "New Dance Central 2 Songs, Release Date and Features Detailed!". Harmonix Music Systems. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
4. "Dance Central 2 Cinematic!". Harmonix Music Systems. Retrieved 19 August 2011.
5. "DANCE CENTRAL 2' AT THE 'BASIC PRE-PRODUCTION' STAGE". MTV. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
6. Drake, Audrey. "E3 2011: Dance Central 2 Announced". IGN. Retrieved 9 June 2011.
7. "Unlock New Outfits & Crews for Dance Central 2". Harmonix. Retrieved 2 February 2012.
8. "Dance Central 2 for Xbox 360". GameRankings. Retrieved 2011-12-04.
9. "Dance Central 2 (Xbox360: 2011): Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 2011-12-04.
10. "Dance Central 2 Review for Xbox 360 from 1UP.com". 1up.com. 2011-10-14. Archived from the original on 2011-11-30. Retrieved 2011-10-15.
11. North, Dale (October 21, 2011). "Review: Dance Central 2". Destructoid. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
12. "Dance Central 2 review". Edge. October 14, 2011. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
13. Del Rosario, Cheryll (October 24, 2011). "Dance Central 2: Too cool for school?". Eurogamer. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
14. "An Iterative Sequel To An Innovative Dance Experience - Dance Central 2 - Xbox 360 - www.GameInformer.com". Game Informer. Retrieved 2011-10-15.
15. Del Rosario, Cheryll (October 14, 2011). "Dance Central 2 review". GamesRadar+. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
16. "Dance Central 2 review". GamesTM. October 20, 2011. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
17. Davis, Ryan (October 24, 2011). "Dance Central 2 Review". Giant Bomb. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
18. Clements, Ryan. "Dance Central 2 Review - Xbox 360 Review at IGN". xbox360.ign.com. Retrieved 2011-10-15.
19. "Dance Central 2 review - Dance Central 2 - Xbox 360 - www.oxmonline.com.com". Future Publishing. Retrieved 2011-10-15.
20. Smith, Jamin (October 14, 2011). "Dance Central 2 Review". VideoGamer. Retrieved February 27, 2020.

External links

• Official website